Video Playlist:

Full Program - Full Program
Extra - Turning the Tide – Award-winning documentary by LPB Senior Producer Christina Melton on proposed solutions, proven strategies, and bold engineering to turn the tide on the coastal erosion problem of Louisiana.
Up Food Chain - David Muth with the National Wildlife Federation voices his concerns about the coastline of Louisiana 3 years after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
Barataria Diversion - David Muth with the National Wildlife Federation describes the Barataria Diversion project to rebuild wetlands.
Retreating 300 Years - David Muth with the National Wildlife Federation explains that coastal residents have been having to relocate throughout the history of Louisiana.
3 Years Later - Garret Graves, with the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority assesses the Louisiana coast 3 years after the oil spill.
Master Plan Explained - Garret Graves, who chairs coastal restoration authority of Louisiana, explains the Master Plan of the state.
Master Plan Projects - Garret Graves, head of the state’s coastal restoration authority, describes Louisiana projects to restore the coast and protect communities.
Dredging Economics - Garret Graves, with the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority explains why dredging to rebuild marshland is so costly in the U.S.
Holding BP Accountable - Garret Graves, who chairs the coastal restoration authority of Louisiana, defends claims by Louisiana against BP and other companies involved in the oil spill.
Humans Linked With Nature - LSU School of the Coast and Environment professor Nina Lam, Ph.D. explains her coastal modeling project.
Tradeoffs - Nina Lam, Ph.D., LSU School of the Coast and Environment professor, discusses how her National Science Foundation- funded project will quantify competing interests.
Sharing with Other Countries - LSU School of the Coast and Environment professor Nina Lam, Ph.D. explains how her $1.5 million project will assist not only Louisiana but international communities.

04/13 - Louisiana Coastal Concerns: BP & Beyond

What are viable strategies for addressing our coastal erosion in light of sea level rise, subsidence, hurricanes and oil spills?

The Deepwater Horizon oil spill dumped nearly five million barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico, with Louisiana’s coast receiving the greatest percentage of direct ecological damage. Three years later, a civil trial is taking place to determine the financial liability of BP and three other companies for the impact to the five Gulf states.

Eighty percent of penalties paid by the responsible parties will go toward gulf coast restoration. But will it be money well-spent? The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) recently predicted that Louisiana’s southeastern coast is likely to be under at least 4.3 feet of water by the end of the century. What does that mean for projects in Louisiana’s Comprehensive Master Plan for a Sustainable Coast? What are viable strategies for addressing the state’s coastal erosion in light of sea level rise, subsidence, hurricanes and oil spills? Louisiana Public Square explores these issues and more on “Louisiana Coastal Concerns: BP and Beyond” Wednesday, April 24th at 7 p.m. on LPB HD. (Taping Tuesday, April 23rd.)

Backgrounder

It is still not known to what extent the most toxic components of the oil have entered the ecosystem. Muth says, “Some of these chemicals are certain to have persisted in the organisms in the grass; in the things that eat the grass and the things that eat the things that eat the grass.” Environmentalists note that it took three years for some species of fish in Alaska to display the full effects from the Valdez oil spill.